Directed by Benjamin and Paul China and produced by Quiver Productions, Night Shift is a freshly released horror; full of intrigue, jump scares and following a twisting narrative that keeps you guessing until the final credits roll.
Despite having the lowly budget of an indie movie, Night Shift is seeped in some classic horror moments and commendable acting all round.
Night Shift – Storyline
Escaping her troubled past, Gwen finds herself a job at a seedy, run-down motel, as – you guessed it – the motel’s night staff. While settling down for her first shift, Gwen soon realizes that the cleverly named The All Tucked Inn (because we all love a pun) is home to some far more sinister entities than the stuffed bear head that holds pride of place on the lobby wall.
However, Gwen’s plight doesn’t stop at things that go bump in the night. Early into her introductory shift she notices a dark car that passes the motel at a slow roll and it’s suddenly clear to our main character that her past has come back to haunt her, almost as much as the ghosts she shares her workplace with.
During a conversation with the one living guest, Gwen reveals that a man named ‘Walton Gray’ (why do all the bad guys have such awesome names?) broke into her family home when she was young, before slaughtering her family and leaving Gwen as the sole survivor, left to live with the torment of events past. Furthermore, it’s also revealed that Mr. Gray has recently escaped from the mental institution in which he was held and the appearance of the suspicious vehicle throws her into a world of torment, worry and paranoia.
Night Shift is a Double-Edged Sword
The beauty of Night Shift is that it weaves two narratives into the movie. On one hand, we have the atypical haunted house (well, in this case, a motel) movie, full of jump scares and spooky ghostly appearances, while on the other we follow the events of Gwen’s troubled life as it seems her past has finally caught up to her. The two storylines merge nicely together to offer an intriguing edge that seldom slows its pace.
At just 88 minutes long, Night Shift leaves no time for boredom and kept me on my toes from start to finish. It’s refreshing to finally find a movie that isn’t packed with needless fluff that serves only to lengthen the runtime and bore anyone watching, to a point they are seriously contemplating jabbing pointy sticks into their eyes.
The movie opens up with motel owner, Teddy Miles (played by Bloodshot and Fargo‘s Lamorne Morris), showing Gwen the ropes and the writers use this opening stage as a way to show the viewer just how dilapidated The All Tucked Inn really is, perfectly setting the scene for the rest of the movie.
Night Shift – Summary
I’ve often said that I’m a fan of pacey but short movies and Night Shift perfectly falls into these two categories. With its speedy pace and frequent bursts of staple horror, the movie flows with grace and rarely takes its foot off the gas. Moreover, clever writing and acting to rival many red-carpet names give the movie an air of both intrigue and mystery that not only captivates the audience but also induces real empathy for the few characters that feature.
There’s a lot about Night Shift that reminded me of the all-time classic horror, The Shining. While not quite living up to the work of the Master of Horror himself, it does a commendable job considering its lowly budget and lesser known acting talent.
